Some of you reading this are database administrators (DBAs) who manage systems as their full-time job. Others of you might be developers, analytics people, or someone else who has another job, but you get stuck with managing the database somehow. I've seen a receptionist and a dental hygienist act in this role. We may call you the accidental DBAs, though that doesn't imply you are good or bad at managing databases. I got into this line of work as an accidental DBA who was also a developer.

No matter what your job title, my guess is that you aren't over-staffed at your organization. Likely you wish you had one (or more) more person to help keep up with the work. It seems that we never have enough time to get everything done in a week. And that's with a full staff. What do you do when someone is sick or goes on vacation? If you're like me, you get further behind and feel extra stress while your coworker is out of the office.

There is another way, and I thought this piece had a great title: Having a Part-time Database Administrator Can Help Improve your Bottom Line. It's from DCAC, a consulting company that provides remote DBA services. There are other companies like this, such as Procure SQL, Straight Path Solutions, Dallas DBAs, and more. All of these companies are available to help augment or relieve pressure on your staff.

The piece makes a good argument that often your staff is busy and might not have some of the specialized training or advanced skills that might help solve complex performance issues, architect HA solutions, perform cloud migrations, and more. For many companies, it can be hard to acquire these types of skills, and even if you have a plan, it can be expensive. What if your expert is out of town when you need them. What if you train them and they leave? I believe in training people, but I also know that you have to be able to augment your staff at times.

Using trusted partners to help you improve parts of your business is something companies do in many ways. We might employ a handyman, but would still hire an outside plumber for some work, especially if it is a large job. Why not do the same thing with your technical staff?

These companies might seem expensive when you look at their rates, but using them part-time, in strategic places, can often help your bottom line.